Award Negotiation
The Office of Research Administration (ORA) has the primary role in negotiating the terms and conditions, revisions, and edits of the award. ORA staff works with the Principal Investigator (PI) to ensure that the award reflects the correct statement of work, timeline, deliverables, and reporting structure. PI approval is part of the University of Maine (University) award acceptance process.
Key Clauses That May Be Negotiated
Typically, negotiation is not required on a federal grant because the terms and conditions are prescribed, but in some cases, the following clauses may be subject to negotiation:
- Publication Restrictions
- The University prohibits the acceptance of any award that prohibits or restricts publication, access, or dissemination of research results or prevents the University from disclosing the existence of an agreement.
- Indemnification
- As a public institution, the University has sovereign immunity and has certain protections from liability under the Maine Tort Claims Act. Because of this, any indemnification by the University in a contract must include language that preserves sovereign immunity and the immunities and defenses available to the University under the law.
- Warranty
- The University does not guarantee any research results.
- Proprietary Information/Material
- The University as an institution of higher education cannot agree to protect a sponsor’s proprietary information. Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDA) requests should be sent to the Department of Industrial Cooperation (DIC). https://umaine.edu/econdev/departments-programs/industrial-cooperation/
- Liability
- Liability provisions, including limitations on the liability of the other party to a contract, must be carefully reviewed to ensure the University is not left without protection in the event something goes wrong under the contract.
- Intellectual Property
- The University retains title to all intellectual property.
- Financial Viability
- The financial viability of some commercial sponsors may not be readily apparent and must be researched prior to accepting an award.
- Export Controls
- The University will attempt to negotiate out any clause that would impact the ability to use the fundamental research exclusion.